Pokemon: World of Darkness
by lord-grima
Summary: This FanFiction will be based off the story of XD: Gale of Darkness. Much of the story will remain unchanged, but I aim to give the characters more personality and the story itself a darker tone. This is my first FanFic, so any pieces of advice or criticism will be appreciated.
1. A Shadow Appears

Jacob stretched as he walked along the S.S. Libra's recently polished decks. The sun was setting, and sight of the dying light reflecting off the waves and the ship's hull was a sight to behold. Jacob knew he couldn't stay there forever because the captain needed him to steer the ship for the remainder of the trip back to Orre. Jacob continued his somewhat slow place to the door which lead to the control room of the S.S. Libra.

As Jacob walked through the open doorway, the captain turned from the wheel of the ship and stated, "Good to see you Jacob. Are all of the Pokémon on the ship safe and below decks?" "Yes Captain Shole." Jacob replied as he walked over to the captain.

The captain was wearing his usually blue suit that had golden buttons and white hat which had a golden Pokeball symbol adorned on the middle. Jacob, of course, was wearing his white sailor clothes with a red tie, as well as a white hat with a blue stripe running around the base. Jacob walked up to the wheel, and took over so the captain could rest.

Captain Shole began to walk towards the door, but then turned and walked back over to Jacob.

Captain Shole then said, "Jacob, I just wanted to thank you for your years of service to my father's company. Not many people are alright with spending their lives helping people transport their beloved Pokémon. You understand that they trust us not with mindless creatures, but with their friends whom they worry about."

Jacob, taken aback by the praise given out by his captain, only managed to stutter out, "O-o-of course." Jacob then stood up straighter than he had been and said, "Thank you for your high praise Captain Shole. It is my job, no, my honor to help people and Pokémon."

Captain Shole smiled at his second in command's word. Shole understood not all people are as selfless as the man standing before him. In fact, Jacob was one of only five people who agreed to assist him in transporting these Pokémon from Johto all the way to Orre. The captain smiled as he looked out over the water they were traversing. Jacob, following his lead, looked to the waters which he had known as home for years.

But then, disaster struck. Four helicopters began to swarm around the ship. As one flew across the two men's vision, Captain Shole cried out, "What in the world is happening? Helicopters know not to fly so close to a ship carrying Pokémon! The Pokémon might get agitated and start attacking one another!"

They ran out of the control room only to meet a frightening sight. Flying above the ship was not only the four helicopters they had previously heard, but also a huge bird-like Pokémon hanging above the ship. The large beast cast its shadow on the ship, making it seem like a mere sailboat. As the huge Pokémon descended towards the S.S. Libra, Captain Shole went white with fear. Jacob, not knowing what Pokémon it was, was shocked by the Captain's reaction.

"Captain," Jacob whispered nervously, "What Pokémon is that?"

As his captain tried to answer, Jacob was only able to catch the smallest whisper.

"Lugia."

* * *

"Copter one reporting." The mysterious man in one of the helicopters said, "Target is within range. Permission to begin capture?"

"Permission granted." The reply came in a surprisingly high-pitched feminine voice.

The man in the helicopter smiled. It was truly a frightening thing to behold, for it was the smile of an evil man. As he heard the cry of XD001, the smile grew much larger and much more terrifying as a result.

"Mission Shadowbird is about to begin," He stated to himself as the already disturbing smile grew to a size that should not be possible. As he pressed a red button on his control panel, the Pokeball-shaped eyepiece that he and all the other pilots wore began to emit a sinister red light. He looked over at XD001 to see the creature's red eyes glow in response.

The immense purple and white beast then began emitting a dark aura that even the ungifted could plainly see. The immense creature then opened its jaws and shot a beam of dark energy at the S.S. Libra. The purple beam surrounded by blue flames left purple rings of energy around the creature's large body. As the dark beam impacted the ship, rings of orange light began to radiate from the ship's hull.

The S.S. Libra then did something that defied all reality. The huge 50,000 ton ship was lifted out of the water and began to fly.

As the ship was lifted from the ocean, Jacob and the Captain were sent flying from the deck they were standing on. They landed hard on the water, and Jacob immediately lost his hat. Jacob, after pulling himself together, looked around and quickly found Captain Shole, who was floating in the water and watching as the ship he had been the captain of was taken away by a Pokémon he had deemed a myth.

Jacob reached the captain, and then looked at the same spectacle that his battered captain was witnessing. The large beast let a load cry as it carried away the ship full of innocent Pokémon to parts unknown.


	2. Michael's Entrance

**Authors Note: Thank you for reading my story. I hope you liked my spin on the intro video, but now it's time to meet our main character.  
**

* * *

Michael looks around at the battle arena that he is now fighting in. The arena has sandstone bleachers and columns, but a large section of the arena and crumbled from the test of time. Despite the fact that the arena was huge, the largest Michael had seen, the only people inside the arena were Michael and his opponent.

While his opponent had brown hair and was wearing a light blue jacket with white trim as well as dark grey pants and shoes, Michael had dark red hair and was wearing his usual blue pants, black undershirt, bright yellow vest, dark colored shoes, and his goggles which hung about his neck.

His opponent yelling out, "Metagross, Use Sludge Bomb!" brought Michael's concentration back to the battle at hand. Michael's Salamence took the blow to its side just below its dark red wing. The dragon-like Pokémon growled at the Steel-Psychic Pokémon as it raised itself back into the air.

"Dragon Dance!" Michael commanded his Dragon Pokémon. Salamence then began to glow with a red light that surrounded its entire body. As the light faded and the opposing Metagross launched another Sludge Bomb, Salamence was easily able to avoid it.

"Now, Earthquake!" Michael yelled. Most trainers would use Salamence's Dragon Claw, since moves with the same type as the Pokémon using them inflict more damage to the enemy. But Michael knew that Metagross, being a Steel type, would take less damage from the usual Dragon Claw. Earthquake, however, was a Ground-type move, and Steel-type Pokémon like Metagross were especially vulnerable to ground moves. So, as the Earthquake impacted the Metagross, it was thrown through the air and landed on its back.

"Metagross!" The trainer cried as he ran to his fallen comrade.

Michael looked up to see the blue light in the sky begin to move down and around the arena. Michael closed his eyes and waited for the light to consume all around him.

"All right Michael, that's it for now," the battle instructor Michael knew as Kent said as Michael opened up his eyes to see the Battle Simulator lab.

"That was amazing," Kent went on as Michael stepped from the simulator. "The fact that you were able to take command of that gigantic Salamence like it was your little Eevee was truly something."

Michael smiled at the praise before saying, "I was only trying to help you two complete the simulator." The scientist over in the corner that controlled the Battle Simulator looked up at this statement.

"Even so," the scientist said, "The difference between not just the size but the attitude of a Salamence and an Eevee is very large." The scientist scratched his chin as he continued with his observations. "Since we have made each Pokémon in the Battle Simulator a close to the real thing as possible, which includes a Salamence's refusal to accept a weak or inexperienced trainer. That shows that you have great potential to become a truly great trainer."

Michael was once again pleased and slightly surprised at this much praise. True, Michael was the best trainer at the HQ Lab, but that wasn't saying much because only a select few of the people at this lab were actual trainers. Most of the people here were scientists. Even his mother had worked on this project since before he could remember.

Michael was snapped out of his thoughts as Kent said, "Hey Michael. The only Pokémon you have right now is your Eevee, right? Don't you think you should start training other Pokémon?"

Michael thought about Kent's words. While it was true that Michael would like to be able to train other Pokémon, he couldn't just go out and catch one anytime he'd like. Unlike other regions, Orre had been devoid of wild Pokémon since anyone could remember. So that's why Michael's only Pokémon is the Eevee his father gave to him before he disappeared.

Michael took Eevee's Pokeball of his belt. The then tossed the ball a short distance. As the baseball-sized sphere hit the ground, it popped open and a bright white light came out of it. The light began to take a shape, and then dispersed as Eevee came into full sight.

Eevee had the appearance and the size of a small fox. Eevee had mostly light brown fur, with the exception of the cream-colored fur at the tip of its tail and around its neck and darker brown fur in its ears. Eevee looked up at Michael with a yawn. It then walked over to him, and sat by his leg. It then looked around at the room before realizing it was the Battle Simulator room. As if it knew some future event, Eevee ran over the door of the room and started yipping at Michael to walk over there.

"Well, I guess I'll help you two out some more later," Michael said as he walked toward his Eevee and the door.

"No problem." Kent stated as Michael walked through the door.

As he walked out, however, he almost ran over Wilson, the oldest man in the lab.

"I'm sorry Wilson!" Michael said as he backed away from the frail old man.

"It's alright, sonny," Wilson said as he leaned on his cane, "I was coming over to talk to you, as a matter of fact." Wilson continued.

Michael, intrigued, asked, "Well what is it?"

"Just the fact that your mother and the professor need you in his office." Wilson stated as he shambled toward the elevator at the end of the hall. Michael then started running towards the office, despite the fact that is was fairly close. His Eevee following close behind him. As he came up to the office door, it opened to reveal his mother wearing her usual pink dress and Professor Krane wearing his green shirt, lab coat, and glasses.

"Hello Michael," his mother said, her light green eyes filled with the joy only a mother seeing her child could possess. "Do you wish to speak to the director?"

"Ha-ha, no need to be so official all the time Lily," Krane laughed, "Especially around your son."

"But…" Lily started to say something but then decided against it.

"By the way Michael, I heard your discussion with Kent all the way from over here." The professor went on, "It sounds like your already impressive battling skills are steadily improving."

Michael nodded and stated, "I am getting better at battling, but I still need to get used to battling real trainers with Eevee."

"I'm sure you will get the chance in the near future." Krane replied. "Either way, I'm sure you would stomp me flat in a battle." Krane said, following his statement with a laugh.

Lily turned to Krane and sighed, mild irritation present. "I wish all of you would give my kids so much praise all the time. They're going to be spoiled rotten if you keep this up!"

"It's alright Lily," Krane replied to her worrying, "Michael and Jovi are both wonderful children."

Michael was a bit upset by this statement, since he had his fourteenth birthday a few months ago. The Orre Region officially considered humans adults when they reach the age of sixteen, so he was a bit annoyed with the thought of still being labeled a child.

Lily then turned to her son and requested, "I don't want to bother you Michael, but I need you to find Jove for me. We are nearing an important phase in the Purifying Chambers development, so I can't go looking for her." A worried expression appeared on her face as she continued with "I haven't seen her since lunch, so I'm getting worried. So will you please go look for her?"

"Of course," Michael replied, "I'll go find her." Michael was, on the inside, frustrated that, once again, he had to go find his sister because she got lost on the lab grounds again. "_Or_," Michael though, "_she could have gone off to that crazy Dr. Kaminko's lab again."_

"Sorry to have you bothered by this Michael," Professor Krane said, "But the Purifying Chambers five year development period is reaching its conclusion, and your mother is needed here for her expertise."

Michael nodded at this statement, understanding the reasoning but still finding annoyance in it.

Professor Krane nodded to himself then suddenly looked up. "Oh, yes. Michael, I have left the PDA I told you about in your room. Feel free to get it before you look for your sister. PDA stands for Pokémon Digital Assistance, but I'm pretty sure you knew that already. You shouldn't have any trouble learning how to use it."

Michael, excited by this news, only managed a quick, "Thanks Professor!" before he bolted from the room through the door opposite the one he came through. He ran through the next room, carefully avoiding the man working at the computer, and continued on to the elevator. The elevator took him down to the first floor, and he immediately bolted for the first room on his right.

After walking down a small hallway, Michael entered his room. He walked over to his desk, and picked up the PDA. As soon as Michael picked up his new device, it made the ringing noise that announced the arrival of a new e-mail.

Flipping the device open, Michael skimmed through the e-mail, learning that his sister had been playing hide and seek with Adon. Adon was an assistant at the lad that mostly kept Jovi out of the way of the other people working there. Michael had heard Adon in one of the upstairs rooms when he was running back to his room, so he decided to ask him where Jovi might be.

Before he left the room, Michael called his Eevee back into its Pokeball. Michael ran over to the elevator to go back up to the second floor. Walking down to the room where he had heard Adon's voice earlier, he opened the door to see no one there. Confused, he looked around the room.

After not finding anyone he heard a voice say, "Michael, are you looking for me? I'm hiding from Jovi, so please don't give me away."

Michael looked under the table at the side of the room and saw Adon huddled in a ball underneath it. "Actually, I'm looking for Jovi and haven't had much luck." Michael replied to Adon.

"Well, if she isn't anywhere in the lab, she might have ran off to Dr. Kaminko's manor," Adon replied with a huff, "She probably forgot about me hiding from her, so now I'm going to have to stay down here."

Michael smirked at this statement. As he walked out of the room, he called, "Thanks for the tip, Adon!"

Michael then almost collided with a scientist who was heading towards the eating area of the lab. "The news just came on, and there's been a lot of talking coming from inside the eating area. Let's go check it out, Michael." He said.

As they walked into the room, they heard the end of the broadcast. "The S.S. Libra was reportedly filled with Pokémon. The ship has been missing for five days, and all the authorities can say is that they don't have any clue what has happened," the news anchor stated, "All we can do is hope that the dozens of Pokémon on board are safe and sound. This has been ONBS News."

Michael, disturbed by this news but still with a mission, left the eating area. Michael then ran back down to his room and opened a box at the foot of his bed. Inside were three potions, Michaels stash just in case he had to go somewhere outside the lab. Michael then exited the lab from the door closest to his room, and started to walk to the border of the lab's grounds.

Deciding it wouldn't hurt to ponder a bit, he thought back to the news cast. It wasn't unheard of for ships to disappear, but it was the first time one had disappeared near Orre in a long time. On top of that, they can't find any evidence to show how or why such a large ship disappeared.

Michael shook these dark thoughts out of his mind. He walked over to his scooter, let his Eevee out of its Pokeball, allowed the Eevee to hop up onto the handlebars, and then mounted his scooter. It had been a while, but he was sure he could find Dr. Kaminko's manor soon.

* * *

As the teenager drove away from the lab, a pair of eyes watched him from the trees and immediately dismissed him of ever being a threat. Little did the owner of the eyes know that the fourteen-year old boy looking for his sister would become the largest threat to their plans.

* * *

Michael's Team:

Eevee: Lv: 12. Moves: Tackle, Bite, Sand Attack, Tail Whip


	3. Snag Machine

**Author's note: Thanks to all of you who have read to this point. I have recieved some advice, so I hope my story will be much more appling now. I should have already done this, but I own none of this. All characters, places, and events are property of Nintendo.**

* * *

Michael arrived at Dr. Kaminko's manor after an hour of trial and error. The large mansion was menacing, but that might be partially because of the thunderstorm that was going on. In front of the manor was a fountain with a statue of an upright-lizard like Pokémon. The manor itself was what appeared to be a slightly rundown building with two electrical machines sticking out of the roof. The yard had a few almost dead bushes, and the few trees that were able to grow here were completely devoid of leaves.

All in all, it gave the area a very sinister appearance.

Michael, knowing his sister had to be inside the very strange building, began to walk up to the front door.

However, just before he could begin walking up the steps to the double doors of the manor, a squeaky voice called out "Halt! I cannot allow you to proceed any further!"

Michael turned around to see someone walking up to him. He had a very youthful appearance, though that may just be because of his short stature and round, thick glasses. The blue buzz cut hair wasn't helping him, either.

"Chobin will not allow burglars to enter Dr. Kaminko's laboratory!" The child, for that is what Michael could only think of him as, yelled.

"Chobin, the number one assistant of Dr. Kaminko, will set you straight!" Chobin yelled as he through a Pokeball towards Michael.

Michael, expecting to be attacked by a very threatening Pokémon, called out Eevee to fight whatever Pokémon Chobin was using. He was surprised, however, to see that Chobin's Pokémon was nothing more than a Sunkern. Sunkern was a small grass type Pokémon that resembled a seed with a small sprout coming out of its head. One might still be worried, as it was still a one-on-one battle, but Michael knew that the battle would be a breeze.

Michael knew Sunkern was among the weakest of all Pokémon, after all.

So, Michael called, "Eevee, get rid of it with a Tackle." Eevee rammed into the small Grass Pokémon, easily defeating it in one attack. As the Sunkern landed on the stone pathway, Chobin fell to his knees.

"Chobin lost!" he cried as he dropped his glasses. As he fumbled to put the strange eyewear, he continued with, "But Chobin will still not allow the burglar to enter the manor of Dr. Kaminko!"

Chobin, finally putting his glasses back on correctly, then said, "Wait, on closer inspection, it's obvious the burglar is a child! Thus, the burglar is not actually a burglar. You should have said something."

Michael, annoyed with being called a child by someone who was obviously younger than him, was going to argue with Chobin's idea of what made a burglar and what didn't, but the large double doors that led into the manor suddenly opened. Then, to Michael's surprise, Jovi walked through the large doorway.

For most, it would be impossible to tell that the two were siblings. While Michael had red hair and light green eyes, his sister had cotton candy blue hair and eyes. However, once someone would grow to know them, they share many of the same unconscious habits.

Jovi then turned to Michael and said in a voice one would expect coming from a little girl, "What are you doing here big brother? Oh, you must have gotten yourself lost, haven't you?"

Michael immediately responded with a "No", but his sister wouldn't listen.

"No, don't lie to Jovi. You can't hide stuff from Jovi!" After this statement which only succeeded in aggravating Michael further, Jovi turned and stated, "This big house belongs to Dr. Kaminko! He makes a lot of funny inventions. There's a whole bunch of cool stuff like at the HQ lab. You should come inside and explore to, big brother!"

After her monologue, Jovi ran back into the manor. Michael was going to follow her, but Chobin interrupted.

"Michael, you are that infuriating girl's older brother? She come around here sometimes and bothers the Doctor. Oh, yes! Why don't you come have a look at Dr. Kaminko's inventions? I'm sure you can get back to what you are doing afterwards."

Michael decided to humor Chobin and followed him into the manor. Once in the center room, Chobin turned and said,

"Dr. Kaminko's inventions are number one in the world! Chobin wishes to be able to create such amazing inventions himself one day!"

Michael, perplexed by this statement, asked Chobin, "How do you know Dr. Kaminko's inventions are better than everyone else's?

Chobin, with a shocked expression on his face, replied, "That needs explaining? Very well. No one else but Dr. Kaminko would ever think about creating such inventions! Therefore, they are number one without question! In fact, Dr. Kaminko is most likely inventing more great products in that room there," Chobin finished as he pointed towards the room on Michael's left.

After hearing Jovi's voice come from the room, Chobin cried, "Oh no! That annoying girl is at Dr. Kaminko's side again! Chobin hopes she is not being too disruptive."

Chobin turned to Michael and said, "If you will turn your attention to the screen on the far side of the wall, Chobin will show you some of Dr. Kaminko's inventions!"

Chobin turned on the screen, started a video, and then ran to see if Jovi was bothering the Doctor too much. Michael watched the video of Chobin describing one of Dr. Kaminko's inventions, which was a pair of sandals that apparently slowly began to negatively affect the health of the individual wearing them. Chobin walked back in the room as Michael, who was wondering if people actually bought this kind of footwear, turned his attention to him.

"If you wish to ever see anymore of Dr. Kaminko's amazing inventions on the screen, just ask Chobin and Chobin will take care of it." Chobin told Michael.

Michael, deciding to never waste anymore of his life watching videos about these weird inventions, walked toward the door that Chobin had pointed out earlier. Inside were two older men, one of whom was clad in a light green hat and orange shirt, while the other had long hair that stuck straight up, a lab coat, and a pair of glasses not unlike Chobin's. Jovi was beside Dr. Kaminko, for that is who he obviously was, and was looking at the blueprints on the table.

"What funny invention is this, Dr. Kaminko? Jovi wants to know!" Jovi said in a cheerful voice as the Doctor mumbled to himself.

"Jovi!" Michael whispered as he walked up to his sister.

"Oh? What do you want, big bro?" Jovi replied in an equally quite voice as she turned to her older brother.

"Our Mother is looking for you. We need to get back to the lab so that she knows you are alright." Michael explained.

"But big bro just got here. Don't you want to see all the weird machines?" Jovi said in a whining voice. After looking at Michael's serious expression, she sighed.

"Fine. Mimi, come here!" Jovi said to the small Pokémon that was standing beside her.

Jovi's Minun, named Mimi, is an Electric Pokémon with blue and cream-colored fur that resembled a bipedal mouse. With a cry of "Mi!" it hopped onto its owner's shoulders.

"Ok, bye-bye Doctor!" Jovi said. As they left the dark manor, Michaels PDA began to beep. Answering the machine, Michael saw that Proffer Krane needed him as soon as possible.

"Oh? Professor Krane needs big bro for something?" Jovi asked in her high-pitched voice. She then yelled, "So let's go!"

After making their way back to the lab, Michael saw that their Mother was waiting outside the lab.

"Jovi!" she remarked when she saw her younger child, "aren't you playing a game with Adon right now?"

Jovi, with a shocked look on her face, yelled, "Oh no! Jovi was playing hide-and-seek with Adon, but Jovi forgot!" She yelled "Bye big bro!" to Michael as she ran back into the lab.

"Thank you for finding her." Lily grinned as she started walking back to the lab. "By the way, Professor Krane was looking for you in the lab area next to the Purifying Chamber Development Lab. You need to go see him as soon as possible."

"Thanks for the info." Michael stated as he ran into the HQ Lab. Going straight to where the Professor was supposed to be, he found him alongside one of the other scientists that works in the lab.

"Ah, there you are, Michael." Professor Krane said as he turned to Michael. "We have been waiting for you. As you know, this lab area was used to develop a special machine. Do you remember the name and purpose of this machine?

Michael, having heard about the development but not much else, replied "It's the Snag Machine. I don't know much about it, but apparently you can steal other people's Pokémon with it."

Krane, with a slight frown on his face, explained, "While that is technically true, the Snag Machine was created to only steal Shadow Pokémon. Since I know you remember the Shadow Pokémon incident that occurred five years ago, I won't go into much detail. But, you need to know that this machine is very powerful. The last Snag Machine was used by Wes to defeat Cipher five years ago. What has happened to Cipher, the Snag Machine, and Wes himself is unknown."

The professor, realizing he had gone off topic continued with "Either way, we need to be prepared just in case Shadow Pokémon are created again. So, we need you, the strongest trainer at this facility, to help us with the test run of the Snag Machine. I will be waiting upstairs in the Battle Simulation room after we get the machine hooked up to your arm."

Michael, excited to test out this interesting machine, helped them put it on his right arm. The machine had silver plates on the back part of his hand and his shoulder. The silver plate on his hand connected to a glove-like cover for his hand, and a large black wire connected the two plates. Several wires connected the larger silver plate on his shoulder to an eyepiece which covered Michael's' right eye.

"A perfect fit!" The scientist beside Krane said. "Well, we'll be waiting in the Simulation room for you." He continued as they walked away. "But wait," he said, stopping as Krane continued on, "you need Pokeballs to capture Pokémon, even simulations! So here, I have imported five from the Hoenn region for use in this experiment."

Michael accepted the Pokeballs, which were in dormant state, making them golf ball rather than baseball size. However, he then heard a scream from the next room.

"W-What is happening?" The scientist stuttered. Michael ran out the door, ready to defeat whatever threat lay beyond.

* * *

**Michael's Team:**

**Eevee: Lv: 12. Moves: Tackle, Bite, Sand Attack, Tail Whip**


	4. A Turn of Events

**I apologize for the long delay in updates. All of the previous chapters have been somewhat updated, and the explanation you all deserve will follow. Thanks for your patience!**

* * *

Michael quickly scanned the outside area of the HQ to try to find out what had happened. What he saw was a vision of total chaos. Both Ladon, another young trainer at the HQ Lab whose partner was Sentret, and Russel, one of the few scientists at the Lab which had a Pokémon partner, were lying unconscious on the ground.

Ladon had claw marks along his arms, some of which appeared to be quite deep and inflamed, but looked fine everywhere else. On the other hand, Russel had apparently been hit on the temple and fell unconscious immediately. The fact that he was bleeding from a would in his head made any other assumption irrelevant. The fountains that decorated the field in front of the Lab appeared to have scorched by powerful flames.

But the most out of place things were the three people in white armor-like uniforms. One was much buffer that the other two, and also had Professor Krane pinned with his arms. The second was the most generic of the three, only wearing a uniform and a red scarf. The third, who appeared to be the leader, had a slightly different helmet as well as yellow trim on his uniform. They also had a storage van, a large hover vehicle usually used for transporting large Pokémon and items.

"We need to leave, before anymore of them see us!" The plain grunt yelled. He then immediately turned and saw Michael running towards them.

"Naps!" He yelled towards the yellow one, "Can you handle him like you did the others?"

Naps, as that was apparently his name, turned toward Michael. "So what? Are you going to try to play the hero? In that case, it's time for you to learn heroes don't always win!" Naps unclipped a Pokeball from his uniform. "Teddiursa, crush him!" He yelled as he threw the sphere in Michael's direction.

The Pokémon that appeared looked a lot like a child's teddy bear. It had orange and cream-colored fur that covered most of its body, and a symbol in the form of a crescent moon on its forehead. This was expected, but what shocked and also scared Michael was the look in the Pokémon's eyes. Normal Pokémon have that sparkle in their eyes that shows emotion and intelligence. Even Pokémon that have no problem attacking people show malicious intent in their eyes. However, this Teddiursa had neither. It just looked towards Michael with what appeared to be soulless eyes.

The eyes of one that cannot feel emotion.

Michael also noticed it appeared to have fresh blood on its claws. With a grimace, Michael threw out Eevee to fight this monster.

Then, something strange happened. The eyepiece from the Snag Machine then shot out and created a turquoise screen that Michael could see through. Staring past it, he was shocked to see that the Teddiursa now had a glowing purple aura surrounding it. Michael, putting the pieces together, was shocked as a single realization came to mind.

He was facing down a Shadow Pokémon.

"Michael!" Professor Krane yelled, coming to the same conclusion that Michael had. "That's a Shadow Pokémon! You need to snag it from him!"

Michael looked back at the Teddiursa. Eevee was dancing around its attacks, allowing the bear's claws to cut only air. Michael unclipped one of the Pokeballs that he had on his belt. He held it in his glove that connected to the Snag Machine and turned it to active mode. The Pokeball grew to its normal size and began to emit a purple glow.

"Throw it now!" Professor Krane yelled.

Michael reared back his arm, and threw the sphere at the Teddiursa. What happened next shocked him. Normally, when catching a Pokémon, the Pokémon will turn into white light and be sucked into the ball. However, what happened now was totally different. Instead of turning into white light, what appeared to be a ghostly hand popped out of the Pokeball and dragged Teddiursa into it! The ball immediately showed a successful capture.

"Wa-What just happened? W-Was it a snag?" Naps stuttered, obviously not hearing what Professor Krane had just yelled at Michael.

"Naps? What the hell just happened?" The grunt yelled towards his yellow partner. His eyes widened when they landed on the machine on Michael's arm.

"Naps! We need to get out of here now! If you can't handle the kid, looks like we'll have to do it the hard way!" The grunt threw out a Pokeball.

"Magmar! Use Hypnosis!" Out of the Pokeball came a red and yellow colored creature. Before Michael could get any more details, a series of blue orbs began to lull him into a deep sleep. Just before he lost consciousness, he saw the large man throw Professor Krane in the back of their vehicle.

His final thought before he completely lost consciousness was this. "_I failed_."

When Michael came to, he was laying on his bed in his room. He quickly checked his belt, only to discover he was missing the Pokeballs holding both his Eevee and the strange Teddiursa.

Silently cursing under his breath, Michael made his way towards the room where he had obtained the Snag Machine, which was still secured on his arm. After the door opened, he was met with a sorry sight.

Ladon and Russel were sleeping on two examination tables. While Russel looked perfectly fine, Ladon was another story. His arms, "_which had most likely been attacked by the Teddiursa,"_ Michael thought, had been torn to shreds. Michael could see muscle twitching and even the white of his bones. Luckily, one of the scientists was also a medical doctor, and she was currently patching up his arms to the best of her abilities.

But what really affected Michael was the sight of his mother and sister over by the table. Jovi was crying, and Lily was trying to comfort her. Unlike most children, Jovi rarely ever cried, so to see her openly weeping was surprising. Michael also saw one of the scientists discussing something with Lily.

As he walked over, he heard the scientist say "But that is impossible! Without Professor Krane, we have no chance of completing the Purifying Chamber!"

Lily quickly countered his statement with, "It's because of everyone here that we got so far!" Lily then turned to Michael.

"Michael!" She exclaimed. "It's good to see that you are feeling better!" Lily, after giving Jovi one more comforting tap, moved over to embrace her son.

"Your Pokémon are currently over in the Development Area, being healed by Blissey. If you want, feel free to go pick them up." His mother whispered as she released him from her hug.

With a mutter of "thanks", Michael walked over to the Development Area and picked up his Pokémon. After walking back to where his mother had been a second ago, he discovered she had already gone upstairs.

Michael up to the upstairs portion of the Lab and found his mother in Professor Krane's office, looking through the notes in the Purifying Chamber file.

"Hey Michael." She said, worry still evident in her eyes. "Can I ask a favor of you? I need you to go to Gateon Port to pick up a part for the Chamber. It shouldn't be too far for you to travel."

Just before Michael accepted the job, his sister ran into the room, yelling, "I know where the Parts Shop is! Let Jovi do it!"

Lily turned to her younger child, shaking her head. "You don't need to do this alone, Jovi. So, unless Michael is fine with you going, you need to stay here."

Michael immediately responded with, "I'm fine with her coming along." Michael wanted to do something to cheer up his younger sister. He knew she needed it.

"Yay!" Jovi yelled in a very high-pitched voice.

"Alright. If you two are both going, you need to leave now. And Michael," she said, walking over to her older child, "Make sure you are careful when using that Shadow Pokémon in battle. They are very powerful, but they won't hesitate to hurt you or others."

"I'll be careful." Michael promised his mother. He then led his sister out of the Lab, but before they could leave the grounds, the scientist that had helped Professor Krane attach the Snag Machine to his arm ran up to him.

"Thank goodness I was able to catch up to you!" the Jason, as Michael recalled his name being, said. After catching his breath, he said, "I have some things that the Professor believed you either needed or needed to know. First off, take this." The scientist handed him a chip for his PDA. "This chip will allow you to transport any Shadow Pokémon you capture to the lab."

After receiving a confused look, Jason went on. "I guess I need to explain. We still aren't quite sure what influences a Shadow Pokémon's purification. So, we would appreciate it if you transferred any Shadow Pokémon that you capture to the Lab. Now, you do still need Pokémon with you, but I doubt you'll need more than your Eevee and that Teddiursa, at least for a while"

"On the topic of Pokémon in your party, take this as well." Jason gave Michael a small card. The card had all of the same information as his PDA. Once again, Michael gave the scientist a confused look.

"This is your Trainer Card." The scientist explained. "It will allow you to use the trading depots in Gateon Port, Agate Village, Pyrite Town, and Phenac City. Now, you can't trade any of the Shadow Pokémon you capture, but once you purify them, you can trade them away to a trainer that will take care of them!" Michael, still skeptical of trading Pokémon, slowly put the small card in one of his pockets.

"And finally," Jason continued, "You need to remember this. Your Trainer Card also allows you to access any PCs and use and healing machines outside the lab you might find. It also allows you rent rooms at a lowered cost at Pokémon Centers, as well as permission to purchase Pokémon related items from marts. All you have to do is swipe it through the card reader at the machines or give it to the receptionist at the Pokémon Center or mart."

"Alright, thanks for the information." Michael said. "But we need to go now, so bye."

Jason nodded. "I understand. Just make sure both of you stay safe, alright?"

"Of course." Michael said as he began to walk towards his scooter, ignoring his sulking sister complaining about "not getting a pretty card"

Michael mounted the scooter and helped his sister on the back, as well as letting his Eevee back onto the handlebars in a flash of light. After all the riders were secure and comfortable, Michael began his long drive to Gateon Port.

* * *

**For those of you who read my original (and slightly terrible) attempt at this story, you may remember mention of a character named Lia. Lia was originally going to be from the Unova region, and she would have another snag machine. Her purpose in the story was going to mainly be to teach Michael what he is really getting into as well as catching some of the Shadow Pokémon that would be really out of the way. However, getting her character to fit into the story naturally without making Michael's character redundant was difficult. This was a big factor in why I have not done much with this story for quite a while. However, with the idea of Lia scrapped, I think I might be able to get this story working again. I thank those who have put up with this wait, and I hope I will live up to your expectations.**

* * *

**Michaels team:**

**Eevee: Lv: 12. Moves: Tackle, Bite, Sand Attack, Tail Whip**

**Teddiursa: Lv: 15?. Moves: Shadow Blitz, Shadow Mist, Lick**


	5. The Thug, the Bodyguard, and Jovi

**What better to do to support the reboot of this story than with a new chapter? Absolutely nothing!**

* * *

"Wow!" Jovi yelled as she followed her brother down the stairs that lead to the main hub of Gateon Port.

"Look at all the pretty water, big bro!" Jovi continued as she made chirping noises to signify her happiness.

Michael, glad to see that his sister had already recovered her good mood from before the capture of Professor Krane, stated "Aren't we supposed to be looking for the Parts Shop, not at the ocean?"

With this statement, Jovi's eyes flew open and she spun to her brother. "Jovi knows where the Parts Shop is! It's right next to Emili's house!" Jovi cooed happily. Without pausing to wait for her brother, she bolted towards the distant buildings.

"Jovi, wait!" Michael yelled as he raced to catch up to his sister.

Jovi turned, but she refused to stop. "Follow Jovi, big bro!" she taunted. She continued to weave in and out of the various groups of people, but was not able to stop herself from running straight into one of the people.

Of course, that person just so happened to be a thug with a ugly bleached blonde Mohawk and a lightning-bolt adorned red shirt.

"Hey, what's the big idea, munchkin?" The thug yelled at Jovi. "You really want to mess with me, the great Thug Zook? Don't think you'll get off free just cause you're a kid!" This, of course, received many glances from others passing by, but no one wanted to get involved with the obviously dangerous thug.

"Jovi! Come here, now!" Michael yelled at his sister once he saw what she had gotten herself into. Jovi, squeaking in fear, ran to hide behind her brother.

"So, you're with that munchkin, huh?" The thug asked Michael. "You look like a trainer, kid." The thug smirked. "It 'ada be fun to pound you into the ground with my Shadow Pokémon!"

Michael's eyes flew open with shock at that statement. The thug reached for a Pokeball at his belt, and then lazily tossed the ball onto the pavement. The sphere popped open with a flash of light, flew back into Zook's hand, and then was reattached to his belt as the light disappeared form around his Pokémon.

Michael, making out the Pokémon's features, couldn't help but start trembling. The Pokémon had the appearance of a large mongoose. It stood on its hind legs and was covered with white fur along with angry red scars that appeared to have permanently stained part of its coat red. The most terrifying part and the reason Michael was trembling, however, was the wicked sickle-like claws on the Pokémon's forelimbs.

With a hiss of "Zaannggoossssee", the Shadow Zangoose, emotionless eyes and all, faced down Michael. By this point, bystanders had began to stop and stare t the confrontation. Most, however, simply believed that they were in for a friendly battle, as they could not hear the discussion between the trainers.

"Well? Are you going to send out a Pokémon? Or are you going to let my Zangoose take on you?" Zook threatened.

Michael quickly began to run through his options in his head. "_I could send out Eevee, but that Zangoose would kill him in a single attack! I could use that Teddiursa, but I don't want to rely on a Shadow Pokémon. Not to mention it wouldn't be able to take out Zangoose anyway."_

Just as Michael was coming to the decision that maybe he could bride Zook to leave them alone, an kind, elderly voice rang out from the crowd.

"Backing a child into a corner for a fight just because of a misunderstanding? Why, how shallow can you be?"

Michael and Zook quickly looked towards the three men approaching them from the crowd. The first, and most likely the one that had spoken, was a small older gentleman in a purple cowl.

Following just behind him was am an dressed in a red and gray suit as well as a man dressed in a matching blue and black suit. The two latter men had very close similarities, so much so that one might think they were brothers. However, the first had short red hair as well as a youthful appearance while the second had shoulder-length blue hair and the appearance of a man nearing the decline of his prime.

They both appeared to be bodyguards for what one could only guess was a rich businessman.

"So what, senior citizen? You want a go, too?" Zook sneered at the shorter old man.

The old man shook his glistening bald head and turned to his older bodyguard. With only a statement of "If you would.", the blue man stepped forward.

Zook only adopted a ugly grin as the man stepped forward. "First the munchkin, then the trainer, and know you, blue man? My day just keeps getting better!" He turned to the blue garbed man, and his Zangoose followed suit.

With a quick flick of his wrist, a Pokeball that Michael had not been aware existed previously soared from the blue clad man's hand and onto the battlefield. What emerged from that Pokeball was much more shocking than an Zangoose.

Standing proud was a large, yellow furred Pokémon with twin spoons in its hands. Its brown, leather like skin around its stomach, chest, and shoulders gave off an aura of readiness, and its long mustache made its appearance much more elegant.

"Alakazam, Psychic." The man said with little emotion.

With nothing but a brief nod, the Alakazam lowered its spoons towards the opposing Zangoose. Its eyes started to glow and strange pink color, and the color quickly began to appear around the Zangoose.

"Zangoose, Shadow Rush 'im!" Zook yelled at his Pokémon. However, before the Zangoose could even move, it collapsed due to the mental assault from the Alakazam.

With a nod, the blue man returned his Pokémon to its ball. Zook did the same, but with a rapidly reddening face.

"Don't think I'll forget this, geezer!" Zook yelled at he old man as he ran for the nearest exit from Gateon Port.

The crowd quickly began to go back to their own business, and the old man hummed with content before he and his bodyguards continued their walk.

Before they could get far, however, Jovi managed to stutter out "T-Thank you!"

Michael nodded with a smile on his face, parroted his sister with "Yes. Thank you very much. Is there anything you would like from us as repayment for you kindness?"

The old man turned. a wide and jolly grin on his face. "Oh, no need to thank us children. We only did what we knew was right. Nothing more, nothing less."

With that said, the man turned once again and continued to lead his bodyguards down the boardwalk.

Michael, his smile quickly disappeared as he looked at the time on his PDA, told Jovi "We've wasted a lot of time. We need to go find that Parts Shop ASAP!"

After getting a positive response from his sister, Michael continued to lead the search for the exact location of the Parts Shop.

* * *

**Sorry if this was a disappointing chapter after such a delay. This scene from the game always stuck with me, as it was one of the few instances that we see a battle between someone and another person that is not the main character. As such, I wanted to do it justice. I certainly hope I met that goal! I also want to point out that I do not plan on including every battle in the game. Battles that I deem unimportant or uninteresting will only be mentions passingly in the story. That way we don't have dozens of chapters filled with my attempts at fight scenes! Once again, thank you for reading, and I hope to get all of you a new chapter before the New Year.**

* * *

**Michael's team:**

**Eevee: Lv: 12. Moves: Tackle, Bite, Sand Attack, Tail Whip**

**Teddiursa: Lv: 15?. Moves: Shadow Blitz, Shadow Mist, Lick**


	6. The Old Sailor's Sun Shard

**Happy New Year, Y'all! Think of this chapter as a late Christmas gift to all of my faithful readers! I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

The market street of Gateon Port was only a street in name. Anyone who had been there realized that the so called 'street' was multiple roads and alleys that had many small shops and stalls selling anything from illegal Pokémon supplements to mystery eggs found abandoned. This, of course, led to a very confusing time for those who did not know their way around.

After wandering around the area for the better part of an hour, Michael had to admit that he was well and truly lost. While he had explored Gateon Port a few times with his mother and father when he was younger, he hadn't been back to the port city since his father's mysterious disappearance. The fact that his father had last been seen at the pier there didn't help matters either.

"Big Bro! Jovi's bored!" Jovi whined, drawing out the final word into many more syllables than necessary. "Aren't we supposed to be going to the Parts Shop?"

With an irritated grunt, Michael responded with, "Yes, Jovi, we are, but I have absolutely no idea where the shop is!"

Her face a perfect picture of innocence, Jovi told Michael, "But Jovi does! We are going the wrong way, silly! The Parts Shop is near Emili's house! It's on the other side of the market!"

The look of sheer exasperation on Michael's face was a sight to behold; so much so that his sister collapsed in a fit of giggles.

"Okay. Fine. Of course. How about you lead us to the Parts Shop, Jovi?" Michael sighed.

"Alright! This way, Big Bro!" the blue-headed child squeaked as she began to run in the opposite direction through the market.

Michael, knowing that it would be futile to tell her to stop, simply followed his sister's quick pace. They covered quite a distance, running between many other commuters as well as shop owners who didn't bother to try to get the attention of the two youngsters. Michael eventually saw Jovi turn off the main street, and followed her down the smaller lane. Eventually he caught up to her, and he saw Jovi by some people he did not know.

Jovi had stopped in front of an old shop. She stood beside a young woman with a child that appeared to be her daughter, and was chatting away.

The three noticed Michael as he walked up to them, and turned towards him.

"Big Bro! This is Emili! She's my friend from Gateon Port!" Jovi excitedly yelped. "And this is her mom! She's really nice."

The young girl who had been speaking to Jovi walked up to Michael. "Wow, Jovi!" Emili squeaked as she ran around Michael like a Skitty chasing its own tail. "Your bro is so tall! I want to be tall!"

Michael, shaking his head as the two young girls started laughing, introduced himself to Emili's mother, a middle aged woman by the name of Ms. Forme.

"We ran into Jovi on our way to my father's birthday party," Ms. Frome told him. "We were able to rent a small building over by the Pokémart. If you would like, we could look after Jovi while you finish whatever chore it is that brought you here."

Jovi, excited by the idea of being with her friend, turned to Michael with a pleading look on her face. With a sigh, Michael said, "I guess that would be alright. I'll come get her once I get the part we came here for."

After Michael ensured he had the correct location of the building, he waved them off. As soon as they left his sight, he immediately face palmed, realizing he still had no idea where the Parts Shop was. He turned towards the shop that the three had been standing in front of, hoping to get directions, only to see the sign above the door read "Gateon's Finest Parts Shop". Thanking his amazing luck, he walked into the shop.

The shop was not as organized as one might expect. The fact that the Purification Lab frequently bought miscellaneous machine components from the shop would give most the impression that the shop would be as clean and orderly as the lab. That was not the case. Most of the interior of the shop was taken up by bins filled with what could only be described as scrap metal. Most of the scrap could be identified as something that had been torn apart, most likely by an uncontrolled or untrained Pokémon. At the shop's far back corner, a single register sat before an immense and complex safe.

Michael, guessing that his best bet was to ask for assistance, began to look for any workers in the shop. All he found was a teenage who wouldn't shut up about how he had found something called a 'duel disk', so Michael decided it would be a good idea to ring the bell beside the cash register.

A rather large man, obviously not used to the layout of the store, ran down the stairs leading to the upper stories.

"So sorry, sir. Did you come here to purchase or to browse?" the large man asked.

Michael introduced himself and explained what he was there for, stating, "I don't know exactly what part I am supposed to be looking for, but I was told someone named Perr would know."

The man, shaking his head, responded with, "I'm afraid Perr is not here right now. He is supposed to be fixing the rotating bridges right now. He should be back soon. In the meantime, would you like to hear an interesting story?"

Michael, annoyed at this inconvenience but not wanting to be rude to the man who had assisted him, simply nodded.

With a grin, the man began to tell Michael about his youth as a sailor. Michael paid little attention to the tale until he heard the word "Eevee". Suddenly interested in what the man had to say, Michael listened intently.

"You see, Eevee is an amazing Pokémon, and I loved seeing how they have adapted in the different regions I visited during my time as a sailor. As a result, I started to research how and why Eevee evolve differently in the wild, and if one could easily recreate those conditions so that trainers could evolve their Eevee the way that they wanted."

The man's eyes shined with nostalgia as he continued. "But it turns out someone had already created a synthetic way to evolve Eevee, as well as other Pokémon that don't normally evolve with people. You see, they created various 'stones' with elements that are commonly found where the Pokémon evolve naturally. Because of this, evolving an Eevee the way one wants has become much easier. If one wanted to train a Jolteon, for instance, they no longer needed to train their Eevee in plains rich with magnesium. Instead, they could purchase an artificial "Thunder Stone", if you will, that provides the large amounts of magnesium that certain Pokémon need to increase their electric abilities."

The man then showed off a bracelet on his wrist which had five perfect spheres of various color. He followed that by finishing his story. "I made friends with the man who developed the first of these stones. Bill Darwin, of the Kanto Region, was his name. He gave me this bracelet as a gift. It has the three stones of water, electric, and fire potential for Eevee as decorations. However, he also gave me two prototypes on this bracelet that still have not been mass produced. The Sun Shard and Moon Shard are designed to accelerate the evolution of Eevee to Espeon and Umbreon respectively, but not enough research has been done to prove that they work. Experimentation started twelve years ago, but progress has been incredibly slow."

Michael, impressed by the man's story, said, "Thank you for the information. I myself have an Eevee, and I was unsure how to evolve it into an Espeon. I haven't had the chance to travel to Johto to train on Mount Silver yet. Thanks for the information."

Once Michael finished talking, the man laughed, a loud and booming sound. Michael couldn't help but take a step back in shock due to its abruptness.

"You say you want an Espeon, lad? In that case, here." The man plucked the pink sphere from its place on his bracelet and gave it to Michael.

Michael, a protest rising as he tried to return the Sun Shard, was stopped by the man's next words. "Lad, I have been all over this world. That Shard may be _your_ ticket to explore this large and incredible world. I've had my time in the spotlight, and I can't wait to see the next generation take the stage. Just remember that if you become a famous trainer, to say Old Sailor Gray helped to set you on that path."

Michael, humbled by the speech, simply replied, "Yes sir."

Gray smiled. "Now go find Perr and get your Machine Part."

The redhead bowed deeply to Gray, and then ran out of the shop towards the bridges. Once he left, the old sailor smiled to himself as he pulled a picture out of his wallet. The picture contained a much younger Gray with an Espeon on his lap, a young woman, and a smiling young boy holding an Eevee.

"Maybe you will be able to take up his dream, young Michael." Gray whispered to himself as tears rolled down his face.

* * *

Michael spent roughly ten minutes traveling from the shop to the pier's waters, stopping only to let his Eevee out of its pokeball to follow him. The Pokémon obviously enjoying being out in the open air, and constantly ran in and out of Michael's legs in its excitement to explore.

Out in the harbor of the port, twin rotating bridges could be seen, and Michael saw that they allowed access to the lighthouse as well as to housing for traveling sailors from the pier's mainland. Unfortunately, a misplaced electrical attack from a battle a few days earlier appeared to have short circuited the bridges' rotating engines. Michael recalled hearing about it, but the disappearance of the S.S. Libra had quickly taken over the news.

As Michael approached the bridges, they automatically began to turn to allow him access. His Eevee's ears perked up, curious as to the strange noise. Michael, confused by the functioning bridges, stood awkwardly until a person walked towards him from the center of the bridge.

"Surprised?" the teenage male, who was accompanied by a small sheep-like Pokémon, asked Michael.

Michael, nodding his head, told the boy, "I thought the bridges were still out. I just came over here to find Perr. Do you know where I can find him?"

With a sigh, the boy nodded. "I told the mayor that I got them fixed, but he hasn't been able to let everyone know yet. And as for Perr, that would be me."

Perr held out his hand to Michael, and they shook as Michael introduced himself and told Perr what he had recently told Gray.

Perr, visibly irritated, said, "Yeah, I know the part you need. My grandfather was supposed to keep track of the shop while I was repairing the bridges, but he probably got distracted and left. Just follow me back to the shop and I can help you out."

"Oh, and this is Jewel, my Mareep." Perr finished as he waved towards his Pokémon who bleated softly in response.

With a flick of his wrist, Perr returned Jewel to its ball and began to walk back to the shop.

Michael followed suite, returning his Eevee, and they found their way back to the shop very quickly. Once there, Perr went over to the immense safe at the back of the store. After completing a complex unlocking process that included a scan of his eye and a seven digit code, the safe opened. Perr climbed into the safe, and after a brief moment of silence, walked back out with a machine that looked like a small, three sided pyramid.

He looked at Michael and explained. "This is the piece needed to create the complex virtual environment that the Chamber at the lab needs for the Purification Process. Your very own Professor Krane was the one that created the design. Speaking of him, how is he?"

"You haven't heard?" Michael asked. "He was taken by a group who we may think was Cipher."

A look of rage appeared on Perr's face as he heard this. "Cipher? Again! I thought Wes wiped them out!"

Michael quickly waved his hands in a panic, saying, "But we're not sure! That's just what I think."

With a fairly negative look, Perr gave the part to Michael and said, "You might want to get that part back to the lab quickly. If Cipher truly has returned, we will need all the help we can get to go up against them."

With a nod, Michael left the shop. He put the machine part in an item ball, an object used to store excess items in much the same way as a Pokeball stores Pokémon. Remembering he still needed to pick up his sister before heading back to the lab, Michael set a quick pace to the building that Ms. Forme had told him about.

* * *

**I think this was one slow chapter, and I apologize for it. The story should start to pick up soon, and I promise at least one battle in the next chapter. **

**But on another note, you may have noticed how much cleaner and how much easier this story flowed. You may thank UP2L8 for that, and I hope they will be able to help me improve these chapters for all of you for quite some time!**

**With that said, thank all of you for your endless patience!**

* * *

**Michael's team:**

**Eevee: Lv: 12. Moves: Tackle, Bite, Sand Attack, Tail Whip**

**Teddiursa: Lv: 15?. Moves: Shadow Blitz, Shadow Mist, Lick**


	7. The Shadows Resurface

**Once again, work and school have delayed the release of this chapter. Smite too, but let's not talk about that. Here is the next chapter, and I hope you enjoy the added length!**

* * *

The redheaded trainer quickly found himself on the other side of Gateon's large number of immense piers. Remembering the directions given to him by Ms. Forme, Michael scanned the cleaner side of the economic district of Orre.

"Lost?" came the friendly call from a young blond man approaching Michael from the direction of the world famous Krabby Klub. Michael looked at him, struggling to think of anything that would not make him look like a lost tourist.

Coming up with nothing, Michael hung his head with a simple "yes" in answer to the man's question. Michael then quickly told him the directions that he had been given.

The man nodded. "Don't worry, I'll show you to the Pokémon Center, and then the warehouse you're talking about isn't too far from there."

He then led Michael a short distance to a rather impressive two-story building.

Michael, seeing the large P.C. symbol identifying the building as the Pokémon Center, turned to the blond man and gratefully said, "I am in your debt. Thank you for your help."

The man shook his head. "No need to be so formal kid. You're welcome and all, but try to loosen up a little. Life's more than manners and Pokémon, kid. I'll see you around."

The man quickly walked off, not noticing the gleam of sweat that had quickly covered the teen's forehead or the dazed look in his emerald eyes.

Michael, enveloped in memories, fell into the past.

* * *

"Michael, strike now!" yelled the powerful and commanding voice.

Michael, facing off against the Hitmonchan that was his training partner, responded the only way he knew how. The young boy, his leg tucked up not unlike a strange flamingo and his hips and stable foot pivoting to supple more force, unleashed a devastating roundhouse kick towards his opponent's ribs.

The Hitmonchan, a Pokémon that resembled a human boxer in a purple tunic, blocked the blow with his impressive gloved hands as if it was nothing. However, the Fighting-type faltered slightly, and Michael took a chance. Michael brought his striking foot back into contact with the mat beneath him and prepared to turn into a rear kick - an action that was quickly stopped by the Hitmonchan's weakened punch to Michael's temple. Michael, of course, fell to the ground like sack of rocks in response to the punch. Held back or not, a punch by a highly trained Hitmonchan was easily enough to drop the twelve-year old boy.

"Excellent kick, Michael!" The voice stated as it slowly came closer to the boy. "However, you should have known to retreat out of Jeremy's reach once your kick was blocked. He even gave you a moment to do so! Most highly trained martial artists have trouble with Hitmonchan's punches, much less a twelve-year old who has only been training for a year."

By this point Michael had rolled over so he could see his teacher's shadow looming over him. "My apologies, Father. I thought the chance Jeremy gave me was an opening to strike."

With a chuckle, Michael's father reached down to help the young boy up. Once Michael was back on his feet, he looked towards his father for further instruction.

His father was truly a simple man. He was of average height, and his dirty blonde hair and blue eyes didn't make him stand out much. His clothing might be seen as strange by some, as he was wearing the same thing his son: A simple black gi, or material arts uniform.

Michael's father, seeing that his son was waiting for more guidance, simply chuckled. "Your class is over for today, Michael. You're free to go now."

The man walked over to his son, and clapped him on the shoulder, a glowing smile on the man's face.

Michael looked up to his smiling father, his expression mirrored on the former's face. That quickly fell when his father finished what he was saying with, "I need to go to Gateon Port today, but you still have your biology lesson with Professor Krane. I'll leave you to it."

Michael's father started to leave the building, but then turned back. "I also left you a present in your room. Feel free to go get it before you go to meet the Professor."

The boy, filled with joy yet not wanting to appear childish before of his father, responded with a curt bow and a simple, "Yes sir."

The man chuckled again, and told his son words that would haunt him for several years to come. "There's more to life than manners and Pokémon, Michael."

He then left the building, his task set out in front of him.

Michael simply let him go, not knowing the events that would occur in the next few hours.

* * *

Michael, finally coming out of his daze, shook his head to clear away the memories. He silently told himself that it was no good to dwell on the past, ignoring the fact that the day he had thought about had shaped his speech and actions for the following years, and began to walk towards the warehouse where he had been told his sister would be.

Yet, unknown to him, he unconsciously curled his hands into fists and his vision was slightly blurred with unshed tears.

* * *

"Welcome, Michael! Sorry if you got a little lost on your way here," Ms. Forme told the teen as he entered the warehouse.

The fairly decently sized building was completely decorated with streamers and balloons, showing off the joyous occasion that was the reason people had gathered there. While not packed, a good twenty people filled the space, most of them sitting at a low table in the center of the room, the only exceptions being Michael, Ms. Forme, and two of the younger guests who were engaged in a friendly battle.

"It was no problem, Ms. Forme," Michael responded. "I just need to get my sister so that we can return to the lab."

"Of course," Ms. Forme nodded. However, she quickly continued with "But before you go, would you mind asking my father for a battle?"

Upon seeing the confused look on the teen's face, she then added "If you remember, this gathering is for his birthday. My brother just so happened to get him a Pokémon, and he wants to see my father use it in a battle before he heads back to the Kanto region for business. Sadly, no one here has any Pokémon trained for battle besides my father and my nephews, and they only have baby Pokémon that aren't ready for anything more than a mock battle."

The young woman then bowed her head to Michael. "Please?"

The trainer sighed, knowing that he shouldn't waste any more time but not wanting to be rude. "I would be honored to be the first to battle against his new partner," Michael eventually sighed.

With a yip of joy that was very unfitting for a woman of her age, Ms. Forme ran over to one of the older men seated at the table. After a quick whispered conversation, she and the man who could only be her father walked back over towards Michael.

Upon reaching the teen, the elderly man extended his hand in greeting. "My name is Carl Forme, young trainer," he said as he shook hands with Michael.

Carl was certainly not a young man, as evidenced by the "Happy 50th Birthday" balloons that floated around the warehouse, but his eyes sparkled with the energy of one thirty years his junior.

Michael responded with, "My name is Michael Vigreel. A pleasure to meet you. Shall we battle just outside?"

"Of course!" Carl responded giddily as the led the teen out to the street.

The rest of the group quickly followed them outside, and the two contestants faced each other from a distance of roughly twenty feet.

"We will each use two Pokémon in a single battle with no substitutions. Sound fair?" Carl asked Michael.

With a nod, Michael showed his agreement.

Carl's smile sprang forth as he yelled, "In that case, let's get started!" Carl plucked two Pokeballs from a pouch on his belt, morphed the first into active mode, and threw it into the air. As it opened, he whooped, "Come on Jessie, my old partner! Let's warm up before the new blood takes his turn!"

The Pokémon that appeared, whose name was apparently Jessie based on the shrill call it responded to Carl with, was an elderly Taillow. Unlike younger ones of the same species, this Taillow had a split tail that was only slightly longer than the rest of its body rather than the usual two-to-one ratio, and was significantly smaller than average as well. The blue avian didn't seem to care about its small size and took to the sky in preparation for the battle.

Michael gripped the two Pokeballs he had with him tightly. He wanted to see if his newly captured Teddiursa would listen to him, but he didn't want to endanger anyone in the general vicinity. Deciding that it would be easy to simply recall the bear if it became to unruly, he put his Eevee's Pokeball back into his hip pouch.

"Teddiursa, time to shine!" Michael yelled as he tossed the ball into the air.

With a flash, the Shadow Teddiursa appeared. Michael's eyepiece shot out, identifying Teddiursa's shadow status as well as its heart gauge. Michael raised his eyebrow as he realized that simply having the Teddiursa with him had lowered the gauge to a simple two bars rather than the five it started with.

The Pokémon merely gazed forward, its eyes glazed over as if it was unconscious.

Carl, noticing the distinct lack of excitement and energy the Teddiursa family is known for, asked Michael, "Is your Pokémon alright? I've never seen or heard of a Teddiursa this calm."

Michael, not wanting to involve any people he didn't know in his problem, simply responded with, "My Teddiursa is a bit special." Michael, after double checking the Pokémon's information with his PDA, finished with, "She will be fine to battle, though."

Carl simple nodded. "In that case, Jessie! Use Peck!"

The man's Taillow responded with another high-pitched cry as it dove towards Michael's Teddiursa. Michael, having just reviewed his Pokémon's information, knew a way to hit the Normal type without resorting to Shadow moves.

"Teddiursa! Intercept with Metal Claw!" Michael yelled.

The short orange bear's eyes, with their empty gaze, quickly turned to the approaching avian as its claws seemed to gain a strange, metallic sheen. With a barely audible growl, the Teddiursa leaped towards the Taillow. With a squawk, the Flying-type was within the Teddiursa's grasp. The Pokémon then quickly slashed the smaller bird several times across its fragile wings.

Severely weakened, the Taillow was nonetheless able to escape the bear's clutches with a well placed peck between the Teddiursa's eyes.

"Are you okay Jessie?" Carl asked his Pokémon, worry evident in his voice. A quiet warble answered him, and the determined glint returned to his eyes.

Michael, deciding to keep the momentum with his Pokémon, yelled "Again, Teddiursa!"

His Pokémon immediately responded, but what surprised Michael was the eyes of the Teddiursa. For a brief moment, a flash of emotion had shown in the bear's eyes. Michael looked off into the distance as he thought about what that implied.

"Could it be that battling with Shadow Pokémon makes them remember their true nature?" he quietly asked himself.

Making sure to remember the occurrence, Michael turned his attention back to the battle and was pleased to see Carl's Taillow had fainted. Michael quickly had to return his Teddiursa before it could continue to attack the defeated avian.

At this point, several people passing by had stopped to watch the battle. After both Pokémon had been returned, they briefly clapped politely.

"Not bad, lad," Carl called to his opponent. "But you lack control and dedication. Your Teddiursa was very wild. Things could have gone bad quickly."

Michael winced at this statement, but he knew that he could not explain why his Pokémon was so violent.

As a result, he simply said, "Thank you, sir. I will keep it in mind."

Carl grinned. "With that said, its time for the new blood! Ledyba, let's see what you can do!"

Carl's second Pokeball flew through the air for a brief moment before unleashing a bright burst of light. After the light disappeared, a large ladybug like Pokémon gazed forward towards Michael. The Pokémon's wings lazily opened, and it took to the air.

Before the young trainer could send out his Eevee, the unthinkable happened. The Shadow Monitor section of Michael's eyepiece activated and locked on the Ledyba across from him.

Michael couldn't help but let his jaw drop. Carl owned a Shadow Pokémon?

"No," Michael muttered to himself. "It was a gift." Suspicious, Michael looked towards Carl's son-in-law, but his attention was quickly snatched away by Carl's next words.

"Come on, lad! We don't have all day!" Michael's opponent yelled at him. Michael took note of how the crowd had started to get restless, and decided that speaking to Carl after the battle was the way to go.

With a nod to himself, Michael yelled "Eevee, rise!" as his starter's Pokeball flashed open. His Eevee looked towards the Ledyba, turned back towards Michael, made a cheerful chirp, and then prepared itself for battle.

Carl grinned, happy to see that the battle would not be stalled any longer.

"All right! Ledyba, we'll take the first attack! Use Supersonic!" Carl announced.

Michael, ready for anything, commanded, "Avoid the attack and then strike with Tackle, Eevee!"

The fox's ears twitched as it prepared to doge the sonic waves that were bound to appear from Ledyba's stumpy antennae, but instead the Bug-type rushed Eevee while coated in a purple aura invisible to all but Michael's Shadow Monitor. As the Pokémon rocketed towards Eevee, Michael gasped, knowing he would not have time to give his Eevee new instructions.

Luckily, Eevee's long ears were for more than just show. Picking up very quickly on the movements of its opponent, Eevee easily ducked the wild strike from the Ledyba and responded by throwing its entire weight into a full body tackle against Ledyba's fragile underbelly. The Bug Pokémon let out a pained call as it flipped backwards several times through the air until it landed flat on its back.

"Ledyba! Are you alright?" Carl called out to his downed Pokémon. With a grunt that appeared very strange coming from a bug, the Ledyba regained its footing

By this point the crowd was murmuring fairly loudly, asking many questions. Michael heard 'Why didn't that Ledyba listen to its trainer?', 'What's up with that machine over that kid's eye?' and 'Why was that Eevee able to dodge such an unexpected attack?'

Ignoring what he deemed unimportant, Michael gave his Eevee what he hoped would be the last command of the battle. "Eevee, move in and finish this up with Swift Bite!"

The fox immediately responded, quickly covering ground to the Ledyba. The Ledyba once again ignored Carl's cry of Supersonic and charged towards Eevee. As if predicting its opponent's moves, Eevee darted to the side of the Bug-type and surged forwards for a powerful Bite on Ledyba's left wing.

With a pitiful cry, the ladybug attempted to shake free. Eevee, however, refused to release the bug. After shaking its defeated opponent a few times for good measure, Eevee released its hold on the Ledyba, proudly pranced over to Michael, and leaped into his open arms.

Michael chuckled as he caught his starter, petting the Eevee's head as it started to purr. He then walked over to Carl, who had just finishing returning his Pokémon, and offered his hand.

"That was a good battle, sir," Micahel told his older opponent.

Carl smiled and accepted Michael's handshake and said, "That it was, lad."

The crowd started to cheer and clap, but the commotion quickly died down as each person in the crowd went off to do what they had set off to do before being distracted by the battle.

Once Michael, Carl, Jovi, and Carl's family were the only people left on the street not going about their daily lives, Michael told Carl what he had been hoping not to have to ever say to anyone. "Carl, I think your Ledyba is a Shadow Pokémon." Michael told the older man.

"What? Why do you say that?" Carl asked, obviously skeptical. By this point, Ms. Forme, Jovi, and Carl's son had approached the conversation.

Michael, along with Jovi chiming in, quickly explained to those around them everything that had happened since Professor Krane's kidnapping.

"How could such a thing happen!" Ms. Form gasped as soon as Michael had finished.

"In that case, here." Carl handed the Pokeball containing his Ledyba to Michael. Before Michael could respond, Carl turned to his son and continued. "Robert told me he bought two Pokémon from the same person. Said the second was a surprise for my daughter. Could you show it to him, just in case?"

Carl's son, who was apparently named Robert, responded with, "Sure, Dad."

The man took a Pokeball off of a keychain and activated it. After the light faded, a large Poochyena had emerged. Michael's Shadow Monitor responded, and he informed the others that the hyena Pokémon also was a Shadow Pokémon.

Robert recalled the Pokémon and gave the Pokeball to Michael.

"Please, help these poor Pokémon," Carl told Michael. "You and your sister need to deliver that Machine Part, yes? You should go ahead and get back to the lab as quickly as possible."

Michael responded with a proper, "Of course sir."

He then motioned to his sister, and the two began to walk back towards where Michael had parked his scooter. Before they went too far, they were stopped by Carl's parting words.

"Please help them, and then bring them back healthy, Michael. We are counting on you."

The trainer nodded, shushing his sister as she tried to act the hero. Again, they began to leave the Port, knowing that their presence at the Lab was now needed more than ever.

* * *

**This chapter was easily my most favorite to write so far! I wanted to give a bit of backstory for why Michael is so polite, and I also want to delve into the mystery that is his father. So, why not wrap it up into one! (Btw, If anyone somehow guesses the reason behind the Hitmonchan's name, pretend I gave you a cookie) I ignored Poochyena's trainer from the actual game, as Michael and Co. really have no reason to go to the lighthouse and the trainer really had no point anyway. Because of that, we have to wait a while longer for the Snag Machine to be used again. Sorry, guys! Also, I must once again thank UP2L8 for their wonderful help. Anyway, y'all stay safe and I hope to get the next chapter out before Fire Emblem Fates steals too much of my life. Till then, I thank you for reading.**

* * *

**Michael's Team:**

**Eevee: Lv: 13. Moves: Tackle, Bite, Sand Attack, Tail Whip**

**(Shadow) Teddiursa: Lv: 15?. Moves: Shadow Blitz, Shadow Mist, Lick, Metal CLaw**

**Pokémon obtained but will be sent to the lab:**

**(Shadow)Ledyba Lv 12?. Moves: Shadow Blitz, Shadow Shed,**

**(Shadow) Poochyena Lv. 12?. Moves: Shadow Blitz, Shadow Hold.**


End file.
